Raphael E. Pollock, MD, PhD, is a globally respected cancer surgeon, researcher and educator of physicians-in-training. On Sept. 1, 2013, Pollock became a professor and director of the Division of Surgical Oncology at Ohio State. He also serves as chief of surgical services at the OSUCCC – James. Pollock came to Ohio State after spending 31 years at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, where he held several leadership positions. Pollock’s clinical practice and laboratory research focus on soft tissue sarcoma, a rare cancer in adults but more prevalent in children. He is principal investigator of an $11.5 million National Cancer Institute Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE) grant to support collaborative sarcoma translational research. The grant is one of the largest awards ever for the study of sarcoma. Pollock’s SPORE research component is now located at the OSUCCC – James.
Vinay Puduvalli, MBBS, is a noted authority on developing therapies for patients with brain and spine malignancies using a combined approach of targeted therapies, innovative clinical trial designs and rational combinations of anticancer agents. Puduvalli, who serves as professor and director of the Division of Neuro-Oncology in the Department of Neurological Surgery, was recruited to Ohio State in December 2012 from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, where he held several leadership posts. His research focuses on understanding the role of epigenetics in brain tumor and glioma stem-cell biology, and on translating findings to new treatments. His lab team also works to identify mechanisms of treatment resistance, including resistance to cell death and to signaling pathway inhibitors in brain tumors. In this context, he leads several clinical trials involving epigenetic therapies and novel targeted agents.